Xabi Alonso drops bombshell on Chelsea fans with Joao Pedro missing from squad

Xabi Alonso has announced his starting XI for the London derby, with João Pedro the biggest absentee for Chelsea after being left out of the squad entirely.

No explanation has been given for his absence, with Alonso offering no indication during his pre-match press conference that the Brazilian was carrying an injury.

Geovanny Quenda comes in as his replacement and is likely to occupy Morgan Rogers’ usual position, allowing the England international to push further forward and lead the line for the Blues.

This will be the Portuguese forward’s first Premier League start, although questions may be asked about why Estevão has not been selected, given his experience in the English top flight.

The other change was expected, with Mike Penders coming in for Emi Martinez. The goalkeeper misses out on the first match of his injury layoff after suffering a broken jaw.

While we predicted two changes in our Predicted XI, we certainly didn't see the Brazilian forward to be missing.

For Spurs, Roberto De Zerbi has made two changes to the side that beat Coventry, with Mathys Tel and Mateus Fernandes coming in for Dominic Solanke and Tosin Adarabioyo, who misses out through injury on returning to his former club.

James Maddison retains his place in the starting XI after finding the net on Monday night, while Dejan Kulusevski once again has to settle for a place on the bench.

Chelsea fans will be eager to see their side’s attack take on Tottenham’s defence, while the Blues will also be determined to keep a clean sheet against a Spurs attack struggling for consistency.

Chelsea: Penders; Acheampong, Lacroix, Colwill, Hato; Caicedo (c), Henderson; Neto, Palmer, Quenda; Rogers

Chelsea substitutes: Sharman-Lowe, Gusto, Palestra, Fofana, Barco, Nicoll-Jazuli, Lavia, Estevao, Welbeck

Tottenham: Kinsky; Gray, van Hecke, van de Ven, Robertson; Maddison, Tonali, M. Fernandes, Kudus, Tel; Marmoush.

Tottenham Substitutes: Dubravka, Senesi, Gallagher, Solanke, Kulusevski, Pedro Porro, Davies, Olusesi, Williams-Barnett.

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